IAACE Blog: News for You

Having been honored as IAACE’s 2016 Adult Educator of the Year, many ask how it is possible for the smallest county in Indiana to have 50 HSE graduates. The Education Center of Rising Sun is a dynamic teaching and testing facility with Deb Thomason as Director. I am privileged to have two computer rooms and an office when meeting with parents and students. Molly Dodge and Mandi Logsdon of River Valley Resources have allowed me to adopt a hands-on approach to an open-door policy. In the five years of teaching GED/HSE, presently 194 students have graduated from the Ohio County site.

The teaching techniques that enable my students to pass the TASC test is a combination of one-on-one tutoring; ITTS and Connected computer programs; jmath.net materials and practice math test; state practice test; peer teaching and group teaching sessions. This is done with lots of food and snacks. Being a former high school teacher has enabled me to use skills needed to create a rapport with students using two-way communication skills and respect. Flexibility is the key to managing a room of students. Students come to school with so much baggage, such as bullying, peer pressure, pregnancy, children, non-workable car, no gasoline for car, impossible work schedules, and non-supportive employer/parents.

Often times it is necessary to discuss pertinent issues before education can take place. Many students relate that in a traditional high school, they simply did not get the help needed or felt that no one cared enough to become engaged in their education. This is where I feel that I have made the most impact in teaching HSE. My students do get the individualized help that they need to be successful. The students form a bond with each other that strengthens their determination to achieve their HSE. If interested, they are also introduced to WorkIN programs and the accuplacer test for college entrance.

Lastly, I try to constantly keep in communication with my students through phone calls, text messages, Facebook, note cards, and letters. Ultimately, my greatest thrill is when a student passes their test, because that is a life-changing moment.

ELL students in my class love doing variations on reading jigsaw. A jigsaw lesson is a cooperative learning strategy that helps students create their own learning. Students are divided into groups. Each group is assigned a different piece of information. Group members then join with people from the other groups and piece together a clear picture of the topic.

I usually find a 1-3 minute movie clip that reinforces or introduces a relevant class topic. I love the shopping scene in Mr. Mom (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oMdKb0KqcI). There are many teachable themes (shopping, food, role model, containers, jobs, etc.) The class is arranged in two groups – the listeners and the watchers.

The watchers leave the room and the listeners will listen to the video clip without watching it (turn off visual or they can sit with their backs to the screen.) When they are done, the groups switch, the listeners then leave the room, and discuss what they heard. The watchers then watch the video, afterwards, discuss what they saw. After about 10 minutes, the groups are brought together…. one listener and one watcher (or 2 listeners and 2 watchers), and they put together the information (listening and watching) and try to tell the story through the storyboard technique (drawing sequence of events without words).

​The students then take turns sharing their “story” on the storyboard. The teacher can build vocabulary, writing, compare/contrast, and a myriad of other follow up skills on the storyboard.

Jan has included her “official” lesson plan for your review (pdf can be downloaded, or document can be viewed below).

Governor Holcomb spoke as promised. But he gave only a few remarks of thanks to the members for the work we're doing on the State Workforce Innovation Council. No outline of his workforce priorities as stated on our agenda.

We heard some reports from our Youth Committee, Work & Learn Taskforce, and Youth Committee, in which we learned that JAG (Jobs for America's Graduates) is celebrating its 10-year anniversary this year. JAG has been very successful in Indiana, having produced a 94% high school graduation rate among its participants. Secondly, the Lily Foundation awarded non-competitive planning grants to 284 school districts to enhance their school counseling services. The planning grant will be followed by 4-year competitive implementation grant. Thirdly, DWD awarded grants totaling $600,000 to 42 school corporations (or consortia of school corporations) to implement a statewide Work Ethic Certification for students who meet nine behavioral and attendance competencies (e.g., 98% attendance rate, 1 or fewer discipline referrals, teamwork, organization, 2.0 GPA, etc.). Non-funded school corporations may also implement the program. The schools verify which participating students qualify for the Work Ethic Certificate, and it is signed by the Governor. The purpose is to help form in students the behaviors and qualities that are required in the workforce and help businesses identify the most hire-able employees.

In addition to those three committees, SWIC created three new taskforces: Sector Strategies (to provide guidance and support for Indiana's sector partnerships), Career Counseling (to focus on use of Indiana Career Explorer), and WIOA Implementation ad hoc Taskforce (to review WIOA draft policies as needed, the Eligible Training Provider List, and One-Stop operators).

We received an update on DWD's Demand-Driving Workforce System initiative. It has three components: (1) capturing accurate, relevant job demand data, (2) defined library of skills needed for occupations and where to learn those skills, and (3) informing of stakeholders (e.g., training providers, employers, educators, parents, job seekers) of current job availability, future job demand, and skills needed to obtain those jobs. {Rob's commentary: I think we'll see this initiative manifested in tools like Indiana Career Explorer, Hoosiers By The Numbers reports, the Eligible Training Provider List, Ivy Tech Workforce Alignment Tool, WorkOne dashboards, etc.}

Aliesha Hawkins reported on WorkIN successes. From July 1, 2011 through December 31, 2016, the program has had 4,806 enrollments, 3,972 (85%) completions, and 3,100 (78%) certifications. The program has a 93% employment rate. There are almost 400 WorkIN programs throughout the state. A success story featuring Molly Dodge and a student in Region 9 is at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GwatrHlVZtw (and below).